By Abdullahi Lukman
More than 40 percent of residents in Nampula Province and Zambezia Province are facing food and nutritional insecurity, according to Mozambique’s Technical Secretariat for Food and Nutritional Security (SETSAN), highlighting persistent challenges in the country’s central and northern regions.
SETSAN reports that about 30 percent of people in Sofala Province, Manica Province and Cabo Delgado Province are also affected, while southern provinces record lower levels, with less than 20 percent of the population experiencing food insecurity.
Speaking in Maputo during the 7th ordinary session of the National Council for Food and Nutritional Security (CONSAN), SETSAN Executive Secretary Judite Mussácula called for increased agricultural production and improved nutrition practices.
She emphasized the importance of incorporating locally produced foods such as beans and potatoes into children’s daily diets and encouraging better maternal nutrition during pregnancy, including the consumption of eggs and nutrient-rich traditional porridge made with peanuts and coconut.
Prime Minister Benvinda Levi warned that the situation could deteriorate further as Cyclone Gezani approaches.
The storm is forecast to affect the southern provinces of Inhambane Province and Gaza Province, as well as Sofala in central Mozambique, potentially compounding the damage caused by floods in mid-January.
The earlier floods destroyed more than 450,000 hectares of farmland and killed approximately 430,000 livestock in Gaza, Maputo and parts of Sofala.
Heavy rains also resulted in 22 deaths, nine missing persons and 45 injuries, affecting over 700,000 people and inundating about 165,000 homes. Mozambique’s rainy and cyclonic season, which began in October 2025, is expected to continue until April.
Authorities warn that without strengthened agricultural recovery efforts and improved food utilization practices, food and nutritional insecurity could deepen in the coming months.
